Welcome back to another edition of Lining Up. With the trade deadline passing last Monday, we now have some data from the week to see how recent acquisitions are adjusting to their new teams. This week will also examine a recent defensemen who has been filling big shoes and doing well with the new role just in time for your playoff stretch.

Let's dive in.

Claude Giroux – Owen Tippett

Both players were swapped along with a few picks as Florida attempted to stack their already dominant lineup. For his part, Giroux has had a tremendous change in scenery as he is now lining up beside Aleksander Barkov as well as joining the top power play unit. As a result of the prime deployment he has already produced with four points, two power play points and nine shots on goal. On the season he has 45 points in 60 games and has put up over two and a half shots per game. That point pace is right in line with his production over the previous two seasons but expect that to increase over the final few weeks with this prime deployment.

Tippett is a high-end prospect who has the upside to be a very productive player according to his prospect report. Drafted 10th overall in 2017 but on a very deep Florida roster, Tippett did not receive much opportunity to showcase his talents. However, with the trade to Philadelphia he will hopefully have many more chances to play top six minutes even though it will be with players of lesser calibre than a Jonathan Huberdeau or Aleksander Barkov. Well, he has seen an increase of 56% in average time on ice as well as a 69% increase in percentage of power play, so the deployment is good. He is also seeing that power play time on what is the top unit however, Tippett has only recorded one point in his first five games with Philidelphia and has spent most of his time with Morgan Frost. Ultimately this continued deployment on the power play would be good if you own Tippett in dynasty leagues but despite the increased opportunity there are better options available for the remainder of the season.

Andrew Copp – Frank Vatrano

The New York Rangers made smart depth additions to their forward corps by trading for Copp at the trade deadline last week and for Vatrano prior to. Both players have found themselves lining up on the top two Rangers lines and have so far produced solid results.

Copp has so far put up at least a point in all three of his games so far on the new team, which may be attributable to his cushy new spot alongside Ryan Strome and Artemi Panarin. Including three points from his last game with Winnipeg, Copp is up to eight points in his last four games. On the season he has 40 points in 59 games which is right in line with his production last year. However last season and this season he was up and down the Winnipeg lineup, seeing time with Mark Scheifele or Nikolaj Ehlers as well as Mason Appleton (last season) and Adam Lowry (last and this season). It is unlikely that Copp will continue to score at a point-per-game pace but if he can consistently be at least paired with Panarin for the remainder of the season he could see an increase in production from his normal pace down the stretch. If he is not scoring, Copp can also chip in with shots as he has two and a half shots per game on the season. At only 48% rostered in Yahoo leagues, pick up Copp while he is hot especially considering New York's upcoming schedule.

Vatrano has also found himself in an opportune position as he is lining up on the other top Rangers line with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. Similar to Copp, Vatrano is on a hot streak as well since being traded with four points in his last four games. He was having a somewhat down season, only on pace for 34 points which is to be expected based on the frequency he was playing on the depth lines in Florida. Vatrano has spent the majority of this season alongside Joe Thornton and Owen Tippett which is an enormous downgrade from Zibanejad and Kreider. Besides the improved deployment, Vatrano is also seeing a significant increase in his ice team. In Florida he averaged 12:11 with a high of 15:21, with the Rangers Vatrano is up to an average of 15:40 with a high of 18:19. That is more than a three minute increase in average ice time and most of it with two of the top forwards in the league. So long as he is continuing to receive this type of deployment expect his production to increase and at only 12% rostered in Yahoo leagues he is likely available for you to add.

The Rangers have a decent first week of playoffs, consisting of three games including one against New Jersey and another against Ottawa. Overall New York plays 12 games during the three weeks of fantasy playoffs, three in each of the first two weeks and six in the last which is an average amount in comparison to other teams so consider adding these two options so long as their respective situations remain this favourable.

Sean Durzi

With eight points in his last 10 games, including three assists against Chicago last week, Durzi might have appeared on your radar just in time for fantasy playoffs. This production can be exemplified by comparing his deployment before and after Drew Doughty was injured on March 7.

Before Doughty:

Average TOI – 17:25

Average %PP – 37.8

Average SOG – 1.6

Point per game pace – 0.4

After Doughty:

Average TOI – 23:37

Average %PP – 63.8

Average SOG – 2.1

Point per game pace – 0.8

He is soaking up all of the deployment from Doughty's absence and producing with it. Los Angeles plays three more times this week, get him into your lineup.

Stay safe.